Chinese police seize fake cash worth $59m

Chinese police have seized counterfeit notes with a face value of 422 million yuan ($59 million) in the largest haul since the 1949 founding of the People’s Republic of China.

Sixteen members of a counterfeiting ring spanning from southern Guangdong province to Heilongjiang province in China’s far northeast were arrested in a joint police operation, the Ministry of Public Security said in a statement Thursday.

None of the six tonnes of counterfeit currency ended up in circulation, it said.

Police also seized counterfeiting equipment and raw materials.

Physical currency is becoming obsolete throughout China as more and more consumers use mobile payment systems such as WeChat Pay and Alipay in daily life.